“Today the Wisconsin Senate advanced
a bill that I believe our members can be proud of. While there is no doubt that
this was a difficult budget, it was also a responsible one; by making some
tough financial decisions, we ensured that the interests of Wisconsin’s
hardworking taxpayers were protected. We refused to raise sales, income or
property taxes. We undertook long awaited, meaningful reforms to Wisconsin’s
antiquated prevailing wage law which artificially inflated the cost of
taxpayer-funded projects to the tune of hundreds of millions annually.

We looked towards the future by
refusing to allow our state’s borrowing to swell to unmanageable levels, and
made difficult decisions to ensure that we will continue to foster the
development of infrastructure—but not at the expense of maxing out the state’s
credit card.

Equally importantly, we ensured that
we continued to invest in our priorities, fully funding K-12 education in the
first year of the biennium and allocating an additional $100 per pupil to our
schools in the second year. We reduced the proposed cut to the University of
Wisconsin System and created new flexibilities to allow one of our state’s
greatest institutions to be reactive to this and future financial challenges.

Throughout this process, we have listened
to and implemented the valuable feedback we received from our constituents. We
protected the programs that Wisconsin’s most vulnerable populations rely on,
including SeniorCare, FamilyCare, and the Wisconsin Retirement System. The
extensive public input we received played a significant role in shaping the
document we approved today.

I thank and commend all of my Senate
colleagues for their hard work and dedication in completing this enormous task.”